WEBVTT REPORTER: WITH EVERY PUNCH, BOB,AND WEAVE, THESE BOXERS AREDUKING IT OUT WITH PARKINSON'SDISEASE.>> THIS HAS BEEN A GAME CHANGER.IT HAS CHANGED MY ENTIRE WAY OFLIFE, QUALITY OF LIFE.>> ONE, TWO.REPORTER: THAT IS 66 YEARSOLD MIKE, DIAGNOSED 11 YEARSAGO.HE STAYED FOR THE SUPPORTSYSTEM.>> IT IS LIKE ANOTHER FAMILY.EVERYBODY IS SUPPORTIVE.REPORTER: THE FIGHTERS HERERANGE FROM 48 TO 83 YEARS OLDAND VARY IN SKILL LEVEL ANDMOBILITY.-75-YEAR-OLD DANGEROUS DENISEDALTON.>> I AM VERY DANGEROUS.REPORTER: THE YEAR OF TRAININGHERE HAS CHANGED HER OUTLOOK ONTHE FUTURE.>> THE PEOPLE I HAVE MET ARE THEKIND OF PEOPLE THAT JUST MAKEYOU FEEL SO GOOD INSIDE, YOUWANT TO BE PART OF THE GROUP.REPORTER: PARKINSON'S IS ADEGENERATIVE DISEASE, GETTINGWORSE OVER TIME.BOXING CHAMPION MUHAMMAD ALIFAMOUSLY DIED FROM THE DISEASE,BUT THIS TRAINER SAYS THENONCONTACT EXERCISE HERE HELPSSLOW THE DISEASE.>> WE HAVE TO GET YOU A TOUGHONE.YOU ARE FORCING THEM TO MAKE NEWNARROW PATHWAYS AND IT IS FUN,SO THEY ARE PUSHING IT.REPORTER: PUSHING FIGHTERS TOTHEIR LIMITS.>> SINCE I HAVE BEEN DOING THIS,I CAN SKIP.REPORTER: 40 PEOPLE, THREE TIMESA WEEK, A COMMUNITY OF FIGHTERS

Parkinson's patients fight disease one punch at a time

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Updated: 9:54 AM EDT Apr 14, 2017

They show up to the gym with their boxing gloves, towels and water bottles. Collectively they’re engaged in the fight of their lives.

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Punch by punch, through bobbing and weaving, the men and women of Rock Steady Boxing are all battling their Parkinson’s Disease diagnosis.

Mike “Triple M” Mantani, 66, was diagnosed 11 years ago and said the training he’s received altered his life.

“This has really been a game changer,” Mantani said. “It’s changed my entire way of life, quality of life, living with Parkinson’s.”

There’s been an unexpected benefit, as well, not directly tied to Mantani’s physical health. While he showed up to get stronger, he keeps coming back for the support from fellow fighters.

“It’s like another family,” Mantani said. “Everybody is very supportive of each other. We take care of each other, care for each other and look out for each other.”

The fighters range from 48 to 83 years old and vary in skill level and mobility. While some are running back and forth across the gym during drills, others are confined to wheelchairs.

In every situation, the fighters receive the personalized coaching they need to keep them active and engaged.

"Dangerous" Denise Dalton, 75, has been boxing for a year.

“I’m very dangerous, honey, you have to look out for me,” said “Dangerous” Denise Dalton, a 75-year-old woman who uses a wheelchair. “When you’re not looking, I can get you in the ankles!”

If you haven’t caught on yet, each fighter has their own nickname.

In “Dangerous” Dalton’s case, the training has changed her outlook on the future.

“The people that I’ve met are the kind of people that just make you feel so damn good inside, you want to be a part of the group,” she said.

Parkinson’s is a degenerative disease, getting worse over time. Boxing Champion Muhammad Ali died from the disease last year.

“You’re forcing them to think and make new neuro-pathways,” Tafoya explained. “It’s fun, so they’re pushing it, it’s a little bit more aggressive.”

The 40 people participating in the training during three weekday classes fill the gym to capacity. Currently, there’s a waiting list to enroll, though a new affiliate is opening in Rancho Cordova this May.

Participants swear by the results, and truly feel they’re beating back the deadly disease.

“I’m playing the guitar again, which is something I hadn’t done in years,” Mantani said. “I’m even thinking about going up and skiing again.”